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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]
Similar problem here. My introverted son is academically-minded but suffers from inattentive ADHD and very low processing speed (he has an IEP at school), so he spends all his time getting good grades in AP classes, and doesn't want to do anything outside of school.

We are foreigners and anywhere else in the world, colleges would only look at academics. But here, it works against him. I've never understood why US colleges have such murky and patently subjective ways to cherry-pick students, when all other universities want academically-strong students and understand that other activities are much harder to rank.
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Because university is more than just classes and grades. They have programs in the arts, music, sciences, school clubs, theater programs etc. and they want applicants who are passionate about those areas IN ADDITION to being outstanding students. If all of the students are just study grinds with nothing else in their lives, they aren't leading a fulfilling path. [/quote]

PP you responded to. I dispute the importance of those things as hobbies.[b] I know colleges increase tuition by offering state of the art athletic and artistic facilities, but in the end, those are not the most important things students learn at uni. I think there's a fundamental difference of opinion between what Americans view as the goal of a university education, and what the rest of the world thinks. For most people on this earth, university is exclusively an academic institution[/b] - music, theater, and other arts are included in those, of course, but as professional degrees, not hobbies.

A compelling reason not to factor in extra-curricular activities in admission is a question of equity. Only middle class families can afford to shuttle their kids to interesting after-school hobbies. Working-class families do not have the same opportunities. Therefore it's not fair for admissions officers to add weight to unusual, impressive activities outside of school.

All in all, I am not in favor of the lack of transparency of US university admissions. Everything is constructed to work in favor of the universities, not the students, whereas around the world, the goal is to educate students who are academically qualified to walk in the door, whoever they are. Here in the US, because of the subjective nature of admissions, there is a significant potential for racial and other types of discrimination. My kids are looking at Canadian and British unis in addition to US ones, and we'll see where they end up. [/quote]

This!  It is not like they do not have clubs and some majors do interviews of applicants, but in general they do not care about your EC or nowhere near the level they do in the US.      [/quote]

And that type of system has deep flaws. It clearly disadvantages those lower on the socioeconomic ladder, many of whom must work to help their family get by. There are many, many extremely capable students who are overlooked because they don't have as much time as others to get the perfect grades or study for exams 6 hours a day. Because it disadvantages the poor, those who are lucky enough to be admitted are assured of a less diverse experience in the classroom and will thus have a narrower understanding of how the world works than they would in a system that took other factors into consideration.

The US system seems to do very well at graduating critical, creative thinkers. People just don't realize that the ability to provide an excellent education goes much deeper than the 20-30 universities that everyone thinks they need to go to in order to succeed.[/quote]

I'd assume the opposite!  Setting aside the "much deeper than the 20-30 universities" comment (all countries do), the US admissions process begins in middle school with focus on grades and ECs kicking up a notch in 9th grade for any normal kid to have a shot at the top 20-30 schools.  Do you honestly think folks in the lower end of the socioeconomic ladder have the time to participate in those AND focus on high GPA but not the time to prepare for ONE test in 12th grade?  The lower-end folks getting into top schools is as completely different process, not related to GPA or ECs and BTW, most other countries have those set-asides as well.

IMHO, the US system graduating critical, creative thinkers does not begin in college but starts way before, in school.  If our college admissions process follow the same process as Europe, I don't think that aspect of the US system will change.[/quote]

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